Loooong Overdue Mishmosh Post!

At Katzinger's Deli in Columbus

So yet again it has been awhile since I have posted...

In Columbus I did eat some good brisket at an authentic German deli called Katzinger's in the Germantown section where German immigrants settled generations ago. I also had some fairly decent Vietnamese food while I completed my adoption law exam in Columbus prior to leaving.

Back in Philly, I hit up Ten Stone, a nice bar/pub on South Street for a late lunch. I had a nice duck sandwich with berry sauce.















On August 8 I left Philly for a quick stop in Williamsburg and then on to Charlotte. In Charlotte I ate with my mom and stepdad, Steve at Copper, a modern Indian restaurant. We had some fabulous shrimp and Steve had his favorite lamb dish.

The next night my Dad, AKA Big Jon, took me to Nolen Kitchen, a newish restaurant that was voted "Best New Restaurant" in Charlotte by Creative Loafing's critics. I had a wonderful warm octopus salad and Dad had some yummy scallops served with pureed corn, asparagus and red peppers. For dessert we shared a strawberry shortcake with pink peppercorn ice cream! The ice cream was quite good, very creamy with a peppery kick.


Finally, on Saturday August 12 I had some food native to Arequipa, Peru at an event hosted by the Charlotte Sister Cities organization. My dad's girlfriend Diane is a Board Member so we had to check it out! The food was awesome and I don't really know what I ate exactly but the hot peppers stuffed with ground beef, raisins and nuts were very spicy and extremely delicious!

Rose Tattoo

Desserts at Rose Tattoo Cafe

Also on July 27 I met my mom and stepdad at the fabulous Rose Tattoo Cafe for dinner. I had a feeling this place was going to be fabulous so I restrained myself at the earlier reception and resisted pigging out! I was definitely right.
The Rose Tattoo is a neat place - the decor is much more beautiful than one might imagine for a place with "tattoo" in the title. It has a New Orleans flair, with plants throughout and multiple bars (one non-smoking). Apparently there is a neat upstairs seating area as well - I will have to check this out next time.
My stepdad Steve had the mushroom bisque - very tasty - and the tuna special - rare ahi tuna pan seared over soba noodles served with broccoli rabe in a wasabi flavored jus. Always true to form, my mom got the duck breast, which was served with a blackberry sauce over a fried couscous cake. Since I was still a little full from lunch I ordered the grilled scallop appetizer served with smoked trout salad. The scallops were good but I was happy to receive tastes from both my mom and Steve since their dishes were downright awesome!
Dessert was the best part. We shared a peach cobbler with ice cream and a mini-chocolate cream pie on an oatmeal cookie crust. The cakey crust on the peach cobbler was scrumptious and the chocolate pie was almost as good as Grandma Sarah's. Yummy!

Wining and Dining

Later on July 27 we headed over to one of the major law firms for a Public Interest Reception that was graciously hosted for all of the public interest interns in Philly. Wine, beer and some huge boiled shrimp made for a fun afternoon! I saw Sara and Marilyn from W&M and caught up on all the Marshall Wythe high gossip.

Working Lunch...

The Interns

The Attorneys

On July 27, which was my next to last day of work and also Tiffany's birthday, I had several culinary adventures. First, my office took all of the interns out to lunch at Pietro's, an Italian place in Rittenhouse that specializes in brick oven pizzas. Tiffany and I shared a scrumptious Mediterranean salad with shrimp and a dish of chicken and shrimp in a creamy tomato sauce over linguine.

We also got Tiffany a birthday tiramisu and had a great time shmoozing with the office attorneys over the lunch hour. The director of our agency thoughtfully gave each of us a different book about child advocacy. Fun times!

Grillz

Tonight I had the pleasure of attending "International Grilling" with two of my co-workers at Albertson's Cooking School in Bryn Mawr, PA.

David Boyle, the executive chef at Davio's Italian restaurant in Philadelphia, grilled a multitude of delicacies for us. As over thirty people watched, Chef Boyle grilled pizza, corn, lamb chops, filet mignon, lobster tail, salmon, scallops, skirt steak, vegetables and pineapple. The skirt steak and the pineapple were definitely my favorites. Included with the class were recipes for many of the things that we sampled. I will definitely have to check out the Mojo Sauce for future use!

Gardens and Parks

Gardens
Yesterday I went on a tour of North Philadelphia with other legal interns who are working in the public interest sector. While I have been to North Philly a couple of times for work and once when my Mom and I were looking for Mount Airy, this was a great opportunity to see some of the positive things that are going on in an area that is stereotypically thought of as drug infested and dangerous. While there is obvious poverty in North Philly, there have been quite a few recent efforts to organize the various communities. Some of the most beautiful revitalization projects are the many murals found all over the city and the community gardens, which can be found throughout areas that are often otherwise devoid of greenery.
The highlight of the tour (other than the horses that belong to the so-called "Black Cowboys" of Philadelphia) was a community garden called Groupos Motivos which was started by a group of Puerto Rican immigrants who wanted to take back their neighborhood. This garden is actually several gardens encompassing a few blocks near the corner of 2nd Street and Susquehanna Street in the New Kensington section of the city. We toured the gardens and enjoyed a scrumptious lunch prepared by the women who run the garden: rice and beans, chicken cooked in a tomato, olive and potato sauce, fried plantains, mashed yucca, a gorgeous salad from the garden and cake with strawberries and blueberries. The lunch tasted even more delicious after a full morning of touring!
After lunch we went to Greensgrow Farms, located in the Kensington neighborhood at Cumberland Street and Gaul Street. The idea behind the farm is that produce for the city can be grown in the city. The farms supplies directly to individuals as well as to area restaurants and also brings in farm products from other farmers in the area. I bought some blueberries, a green pepper and a cucumber!
Overall, the tour was very interesting. It was definitely great to meet some of the people who are making a change in their own communities. While there is still a long way to go - particularly in the realm of housing - there are certainly improvements being made all the time. If you haven't been to North Philadelphia - check it out!!

Parks
Today I met my cousin Annie, her boyfriend and another friend of theirs who are all currenty clerking for federal judges in Philadelphia. We met up at Washington Square, a Stephen Starr joint that is, not surprisingly, adjacent to the park of the same name. We sat outside on the very trendy deck that has couches and I had an apple mojito and a first rate cheeseburger with avocado salad. It was nice to hear about the clerking experience and to know that all this work I am doing in applying for clerkships will be well worth it.
I am still just enjoying being near such a city! I like walking around even when things are closed, but of course I pick the one day things aren't open to want to buy something. I am going to have to make it a point to do some after work shopping one day soon.